Import/export HS code 8311: Metal wires and rods for welding
Metal wires, rods, tubes, plates, and similar items coated or filled with flux, used for soldering, brazing, welding, or metal spraying
Why this is important if you are looking for potential customers in the UK:
- It helps you understand the market size for your product in the UK.
- It provides you with a list of potential leads who have bought similar products.
* UK only, last 24 months analysed
Imports by country
What this shows: Import market volume by exporter country into the UK.
Top 5 values
| Country | £ |
|---|---|
| United States | 9,225,325 |
| China | 8,609,915 |
| Germany | 5,531,108 |
| Italy | 5,001,994 |
| Czechia | 4,902,500 |
Countries rank shift: first 12 months vs second 12 months
What this shows: Countries are on both sides of the Sankey. Left side is sorted by first 12-month volume, right side by second 12-month volume, so rank changes are visible from line crossings.
Top 10 values
| Country | First 12m £ | Second 12m £ | Delta £ |
|---|---|---|---|
| United States | 4,457,151 | 4,768,174 | +311,023 |
| China | 4,749,956 | 3,859,959 | -889,997 |
| Germany | 2,908,819 | 2,622,289 | -286,530 |
| Italy | 2,352,603 | 2,649,391 | +296,788 |
| Czechia | 2,710,872 | 2,191,628 | -519,244 |
| France | 2,376,017 | 2,157,569 | -218,448 |
| Austria | 2,246,765 | 2,008,489 | -238,276 |
| Romania | 1,251,482 | 932,403 | -319,079 |
| Netherlands | 782,289 | 924,225 | +141,936 |
| Norway | 936,569 | 739,092 | -197,477 |
Imports by country of origin
What this shows: Import volume by production origin country. Differences from exporter-country data can indicate re-export routes.
Top 5 values
| Origin | £ |
|---|---|
| United States | 10,018,673 |
| China | 9,122,446 |
| Germany | 5,276,130 |
| Austria | 4,773,445 |
| Italy | 4,717,948 |
Country of origin rank shift: first 12 months vs second 12 months
What this shows: Origin countries are on both sides of the Sankey. Left side is sorted by first 12-month import value, right side by second 12-month import value, so rank changes are visible from line crossings.
Top 10 values
| Origin | First 12m £ | Second 12m £ | Delta £ |
|---|---|---|---|
| United States | 4,845,452 | 5,173,221 | +327,769 |
| China | 5,001,080 | 4,121,366 | -879,714 |
| Germany | 2,802,817 | 2,473,313 | -329,504 |
| Austria | 2,430,383 | 2,343,062 | -87,321 |
| Italy | 2,123,930 | 2,594,018 | +470,088 |
| Poland | 1,895,655 | 1,597,279 | -298,376 |
| France | 1,567,346 | 1,804,200 | +236,854 |
| Japan | 1,689,172 | 1,514,374 | -174,798 |
| Sweden | 1,604,587 | 1,181,744 | -422,843 |
| Romania | 1,292,344 | 913,213 | -379,131 |
Importers across UK regions
What this shows: Number of importing companies by UK ITL2 region.
Top 5 values
| UK region | Companies |
|---|---|
| Inner London - West | 30 |
| West Midlands | 26 |
| Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire | 23 |
| Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire | 21 |
| Greater Manchester | 21 |
UK regions rank shift: first 12 months vs second 12 months
What this shows: UK regions are on both sides of the Sankey. Left side is sorted by first 12-month importer count, right side by second 12-month importer count, so rank changes are visible from line crossings.
Top 10 values
| UK region | First 12m | Second 12m | Delta |
|---|---|---|---|
| Inner London - West | 25 | 15 | -10 |
| West Midlands | 21 | 17 | -4 |
| Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire | 15 | 10 | -5 |
| Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire | 16 | 14 | -2 |
| Greater Manchester | 17 | 14 | -3 |
| Hampshire and Isle of Wight | 16 | 12 | -4 |
| Northumberland, Durham and Tyne & Wear | 14 | 12 | -2 |
| Essex | 11 | 14 | +3 |
| Leicestershire, Rutland and Northamptonshire | 10 | 16 | +6 |
| West Yorkshire | 13 | 10 | -3 |
Import volume by transport
What this shows: Import value by transport mode used to bring goods into the UK.
Top 5 values
| Transport | £ |
|---|---|
| Roll on Roll off (RORO) | 27,712,083 |
| Sea transport (not vehicle on ferry) | 14,613,729 |
| Air transport | 13,823,781 |
| Other | 1,192,784 |
| Road transport | 184,797 |
Transport rank shift: first 12 months vs second 12 months
What this shows: Transport modes are on both sides of the Sankey. Left side is sorted by first 12-month import value, right side by second 12-month import value, so rank changes are visible from line crossings.
Top 10 values
| Transport | First 12m £ | Second 12m £ | Delta £ |
|---|---|---|---|
| Roll on Roll off (RORO) | 14,345,828 | 13,366,255 | -979,573 |
| Sea transport (not vehicle on ferry) | 7,433,346 | 7,180,383 | -252,963 |
| Air transport | 6,923,951 | 6,899,830 | -24,121 |
| Other | 599,094 | 593,690 | -5,404 |
| Road transport | 74,203 | 110,594 | +36,391 |
Import volume by port
What this shows: Import value handled by each UK port.
Top 5 values
| Port | £ |
|---|---|
| Dover | 12,009,006 |
| Felixstowe | 6,640,377 |
| East Midlands Airport | 6,612,888 |
| Immingham Docks | 5,804,577 |
| Eurotunnel | 4,389,064 |
Port rank shift: first 12 months vs second 12 months
What this shows: Ports are on both sides of the Sankey. Left side is sorted by first 12-month import value, right side by second 12-month import value, so rank changes are visible from line crossings.
Top 10 values
| Port | First 12m £ | Second 12m £ | Delta £ |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dover | 6,029,106 | 5,979,900 | -49,206 |
| Felixstowe | 3,803,412 | 2,836,965 | -966,447 |
| East Midlands Airport | 3,154,735 | 3,458,153 | +303,418 |
| Immingham Docks | 3,093,659 | 2,710,918 | -382,741 |
| Eurotunnel | 2,273,389 | 2,115,675 | -157,714 |
| Southampton | 1,694,645 | 1,150,793 | -543,852 |
| Leeds Bradford Airport | 1,136,010 | 780,541 | -355,469 |
| London Stansted Airport | 891,911 | 724,330 | -167,581 |
| Thamesport | 672,755 | 781,237 | +108,482 |
| London Heathrow Airport | 573,100 | 849,774 | +276,674 |
Importer companies by SIC division
What this shows: Industry breakdown (SIC divisions) of importing companies.
Top 5 values
| SIC | Companies |
|---|---|
| Wholesale trade, except of motor vehicles and motorcycles | 139 |
| Manufacture of fabricated metal products, except machinery and equipment | 43 |
| Manufacture of machinery and equipment n.e.c. | 40 |
| Retail trade, except of motor vehicles and motorcycles | 34 |
| Other manufacturing | 24 |
Importer companies over time
What this shows: Monthly count of unique importing companies.
Latest 5
| Month | Companies |
|---|---|
| 2026-01 | 76 |
| 2025-11 | 65 |
| 2025-10 | 85 |
| 2025-09 | 88 |
| 2025-08 | 77 |
Top importers
What this shows: Companies with the highest number of months traded for this HS code.
| Company | Months traded |
|---|---|
| SPECIALISED WELDING PRODUCTS LIMITED | 120 |
| WELDFAST (UK) LIMITED | 114 |
| ALMIT LIMITED | 102 |
| QUALITEK (EUROPE) LIMITED | 99 |
| SCORE ENERGY LIMITED | 94 |
| DRAPER TOOLS LIMITED | 89 |
| WB ALLOY WELDING PRODUCTS LIMITED | 82 |
| PARWELD LIMITED | 78 |
| KEARSLEY AIRWAYS LIMITED | 76 |
| SPECIAL METALS WIGGIN LIMITED | 71 |
Importer company size by revenue band
What this shows: Distribution of importers across company revenue bands.
Top 5 values
| Revenue | Companies |
|---|---|
| 54m+ | 189 |
| 1m-15m | 176 |
| 15m-54m | 46 |
| 0-1m | 36 |
| Other | 34 |
Import seasonality
What this shows: Average monthly import pattern from historical data.
Exports by country
What this shows: Export market volume by destination country from the UK.
Top 5 values
| Country | £ |
|---|---|
| Germany | 7,908,574 |
| France | 7,314,994 |
| China | 6,945,198 |
| Czechia | 6,101,446 |
| United States | 4,613,918 |
Export countries rank shift: first 12 months vs second 12 months
What this shows: Destination countries are on both sides of the Sankey. Left side is sorted by first 12-month export volume, right side by second 12-month export volume, so rank changes are visible from line crossings.
Top 10 values
| Country | First 12m £ | Second 12m £ | Delta £ |
|---|---|---|---|
| Germany | 4,829,114 | 3,079,460 | -1,749,654 |
| France | 4,185,215 | 3,129,779 | -1,055,436 |
| China | 3,930,020 | 3,015,178 | -914,842 |
| Czechia | 3,305,528 | 2,795,918 | -509,610 |
| United States | 2,215,087 | 2,398,831 | +183,744 |
| Spain | 2,007,352 | 1,749,133 | -258,219 |
| Ireland | 1,865,446 | 1,466,007 | -399,439 |
| Turkey | 1,633,976 | 1,394,656 | -239,320 |
| Italy | 1,213,971 | 1,040,927 | -173,044 |
| Saudi Arabia | 1,114,930 | 1,077,184 | -37,746 |
Exports by country of origin
What this shows: Export volume by production origin country. For re-exports, indicates where goods originated before UK export.
Top 5 values
| Origin | £ |
|---|---|
| XI | 129,487 |
| China | 78,821 |
| Italy | 22,623 |
| Ireland | 4,036 |
| Germany | 3,345 |
Export origin countries rank shift: first 12 months vs second 12 months
What this shows: Origin countries are on both sides of the Sankey. Left side is sorted by first 12-month export value, right side by second 12-month export value, so rank changes are visible from line crossings.
Top 10 values
| Origin | First 12m £ | Second 12m £ | Delta £ |
|---|---|---|---|
| XI | 75,503 | 53,984 | -21,519 |
| China | 37,086 | 41,735 | +4,649 |
| Italy | 9,828 | 12,795 | +2,967 |
| Ireland | 1,367 | 2,669 | +1,302 |
| Germany | 1,231 | 2,114 | +883 |
| United States | 0 | 1,937 | +1,937 |
| Turkey | 708 | 375 | -333 |
| Sweden | 0 | 374 | +374 |
| Taiwan | 179 | 193 | +14 |
| Poland | 0 | 248 | +248 |
Export volume by transport
What this shows: Export value by transport mode used to ship goods from the UK.
Top 5 values
| Transport | £ |
|---|---|
| Roll on Roll off (RORO) | 44,583,022 |
| Sea transport (not vehicle on ferry) | 15,161,402 |
| Air transport | 13,207,960 |
| Other | 246,842 |
| Road transport | 105,612 |
Export transport rank shift: first 12 months vs second 12 months
What this shows: Transport modes are on both sides of the Sankey. Left side is sorted by first 12-month export value, right side by second 12-month export value, so rank changes are visible from line crossings.
Top 10 values
| Transport | First 12m £ | Second 12m £ | Delta £ |
|---|---|---|---|
| Roll on Roll off (RORO) | 23,526,955 | 21,056,067 | -2,470,888 |
| Sea transport (not vehicle on ferry) | 9,588,242 | 5,573,160 | -4,015,082 |
| Air transport | 6,756,795 | 6,451,165 | -305,630 |
| Other | 128,031 | 118,811 | -9,220 |
| Road transport | 105,612 | 0 | -105,612 |
Export volume by port
What this shows: Export value handled by each UK port.
Top 5 values
| Port | £ |
|---|---|
| Dover / Eurotunnel | 35,843,483 |
| London Gateway Port | 7,681,659 |
| London Heathrow Airport | 5,291,702 |
| East Midlands Airport | 3,992,711 |
| Southampton | 3,114,344 |
Export port rank shift: first 12 months vs second 12 months
What this shows: Ports are on both sides of the Sankey. Left side is sorted by first 12-month export value, right side by second 12-month export value, so rank changes are visible from line crossings.
Top 10 values
| Port | First 12m £ | Second 12m £ | Delta £ |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dover / Eurotunnel | 19,296,048 | 16,547,435 | -2,748,613 |
| London Gateway Port | 5,806,826 | 1,874,833 | -3,931,993 |
| London Heathrow Airport | 2,507,596 | 2,784,106 | +276,510 |
| East Midlands Airport | 2,343,615 | 1,649,096 | -694,519 |
| Southampton | 1,806,718 | 1,307,626 | -499,092 |
| Dover | 1,618,682 | 1,456,780 | -161,902 |
| Holyhead | 1,443,064 | 1,025,554 | -417,510 |
| Felixstowe | 1,344,509 | 589,780 | -754,729 |
| Tyne | 98,521 | 1,727,741 | +1,629,220 |
| Immingham Docks | 917,611 | 737,214 | -180,397 |
Related HS codes
What this shows: Sibling or child HS codes in the same classification branch.
Quick facts
HS code: 8311
Coverage: United Kingdom, most metrics for the last 24 months
Description: Metal wires, rods, tubes, plates, and similar items coated or filled with flux, used for soldering, brazing, welding, or metal spraying